She never thought her quest for venture capital would turn
her into a specialist in foreign debt, an activist who is now demanding that
the People's Republic of China pay debts incurred almost a century ago.

But that's what it has come to: Bianco is demanding that
China make good on $4 billion in bonds issued in Europe in 1913. And she's trying
to turn it into a matter of national interest.

"We're asking our government to stand up and do what's
right for the people," says the 37-year-old mother of three.

But the Chinese government has no intention of paying up,
so Bianco and her backers are trying to get the Bush administration to take
up her case. The group  which stands to reap a windfall if the Chinese
do pay  hopes China's interest in tapping into Western capital markets
could be used as leverage to exact some compensation for the bonds.

Bianco is the public face of an effort by William Morgan
of Texas and C. William Arrington of Colorado to get the Chinese to pay up.
Over the past decade, Morgan has acquired approximately 6,000 of the 25,000
bonds still in existence from the 1913 issue. Bond valuation expert Jim Choate
says each bond, if fully honored, is worth $3.6 million.

The bonds were issued by what was then the Republic of
China. Underwritten by British, French, German and Russian banks, the bonds
promised holders a steady stream of coupon payments for 30 years. But before
the bonds came due, World War II shattered China, opening the door for Mao Tse
Tung's takeover in 1949.

China's communist government has long ignored petitions
for repayment of obligations incurred by previous governments. And so far, U.S.
courts have agreed, refusing to help U.S. citizens pressing claims against China.

Undeterred by these decisions, Morgan began acquiring the
Chinese bonds on trips to Europe during the 1990s. Morgan, whose great-grandmother
was an Apache, says he only wants to use the money to help Native Americans.
Searching for investment opportunities last year, Morgan came across Arrington,
an energy industry consultant who was also trying to develop projects for Native
Americans.

Morgan has assigned 1,200 of his bonds  which have
a paper value of $4.3 billion  to Arrington, who brought Bianco into the
group. The Securities and Exchange Commission has declined to take up the case,
so Arrington and Bianco are seeking help from the Foreign Bondholders Protective
Council.

John Petty, president of the FBPC, says he'll study Bianco's
petition.

"There is a principle involving the continuation of obligations
by successor governments," says Petty. "When a successor government takes over
the assets of a country, it has to assume its liabilities." Arrington and Bianco
argue that there is some precedent for compensation: Great Britain reached an
agreement with China in 1987 for repayment of a variety of debts, including
obligations from these same 1913 bonds. "This is about whether our government
is going to protect its own people," says Arrington.

Further, at a time when China is trying to increase its
access to Western capital markets, Morgan believes the USA should force it to
honor all prior obligations.

"The U.S. government will be missing an opportunity if
it doesn't avail itself of these Chinese bonds, because it'll teach the Chinese
a lesson that you've got to pay your obligations," says Morgan, 63. "There are
30 other issues they've defaulted on." But the group faces several obstacles
in its efforts to get China to pay even a cent:

 Case law. In the 1970s, holders of Chinese
bonds went to the U.S Foreign Claims Settlement Commission for repayment. The
FCSC determined that China's communist government had no obligation to the 1913
bondholders.

 Diplomacy. Morgan, Arrington and Bianco are
pressing their case through the U.S. legal system, but the political reality
is that the U.S.-China relationship is more fragile than it has been in decades.
For the U.S. to seek repayment of 1913 bonds just months after a diplomatic
crisis involving a U.S. spy plane was settled might seem clumsy at best, or
arrogant at worst.

 The public interest. The 1933 law allows
the president to aid U.S. citizens seeking repayment when it is "in the public
interest." The problem here is that a presidential proclamation could be seen
as in the interest of only one citizen  William Morgan.

Mindful of that, the group established the AB Foundation,
to which Morgan has pledged 1,200 bonds from his stake. The foundation would
fund several ventures that Arrington and Bianco have been trying to start, including
an 8,000-megawatt power plant located in the Western USA and the development
of environmentally friendly, recyclable composite material.

Bianco hopes to use $15 million of foundation money to
fund her own company, Visco, which would produce a seat belt-monitoring device
she says could improve auto safety and lead to a reduction of insurance costs.

Several charities also stand to benefit, including Hospice
Organizations of America, Silver Bullets Ranch for emotionally challenged youth
and adults and a Los Angeles center for impaired and disabled teens and young
adults. "None of us are looking to line our pockets," Bianco says. "This needs
to benefit everybody."

Despite the foundation's apparently noble goals, one fact
looms large: If the Chinese pay, Morgan would be the primary beneficiary, since
he'd still own about 5,000 bonds, worth $18 billion at full value. But Morgan,
who recently suffered a stroke, insists that he's not in this for self-enrichment.
"It's time in my life to do some good," he says. "The purpose is to try and
make an impact on some of the evils we find in our society."

A spokesman for the embassy of the People's Republic of
China would not comment on the issue.